Ivory Coast Restarts Cocoa Shipments From Main Ports of Abidjan, San Pedro

Ivory Coast restarted shipments of cocoa beans from its port at Abidjan, 3 1/2 months after President Alassane Ouattara issued a ban to halt exports of the chocolate ingredient during the country’s political crisis.

The world’s biggest cocoa producer began exports from the commercial capital’s port yesterday, said Eric Koffi, interim operations director at the National Coffee and Cocoa Management Committee.

“We are expecting quite a lot of shipments in the coming days,” he said by phone today. The western port at San Pedro will begin raw-bean exports tomorrow, and both harbors will export at least 5,000 metric tons of semi-finished cocoa products between May 8 and May 12, Koffi said.

Ouattara’s export ban, issued two months after disputed a November election, was meant to starve his rival, Laurent Gbagbo, of funds. Gbagbo, who ruled the West African nation for a decade, refused to cede power and sparked a violent four-month impasse that ended when he was captured in Abidjan April 11.

Most cocoa exporters heeded Ouattara’s ban and halted their shipments. About 400,000 tons of cocoa beans, nearly a third of the country’s annual crop, have been stuck in warehouses at the two ports since January.

Exporters warned a majority of the stocks have been affected by humidity, Gnamien Konan, interim Agriculture Minister, said today. They have been given until June 30 to ship the beans, according to a statement from the agriculture and finance ministries.

Konan said the administration is discussing a request by exporters “to take facilitating measures regarding taxes and levies,” without providing further details.

Cocoa for June delivery climbed for the first day in five, adding $23, or 0.7 percent, to $3,078 per ton by 12:09 p.m. on ICE Futures U.S. in New York.

(SOurce: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-06/ivory-coast-restarts-cocoa-shipments-from-main-ports-of-abidjan-san-pedro.html)